"Good morning Danion," she said.
His grandmother was nearing sixty years on the world and showing signs of her age. Once she was a great naturist, teaching others the path and taking many under her wing in the ways of the forest. Her old age let her down now and she had recently become an elder of the path.
"Good morning," Danion replied as a plate of food was put down in front of him. Little meat was eaten within the community. Fruits and vegetables given by the forest or traded from the Path of Gods fields were the main source of food.
"Have you seen my mother or father around?" he asked.
"They were seen, heading out into the forest some time ago," she replied.
Danion thought that was an odd thing for them to do.
"Why have they gone into the forest grandmother?" Danion asked.
"I think you are a bit too young to know of these things. There are certain acts that a man and a woman come together to make children”
Danion thought about it a bit and he then remembered a book he had read about reproduction and he was not hungry, putting down the fruit that he was about to put into his mouth. His grandmother laughed after realising why he was not eating and reached over to take some of the fruit from his plate.
An hour past before his parents turned up, looking somewhat dishevelled.
"There you are Danion. Did you sleep well?" his mother asked.
Danion nodded. He found it hard to look at them.
"Your father is going to head back to the monastery now," she said.
Danion stood up and walked to his father.
"You be good for your mother and listen to what she has to say, as soon as she feels that you have learnt what you need to, then I will come and get you," said Balen.
"Fine," said Danion.
"Is that all you can say to your father?" Aly asked.
Danion nodded and then walked away.
"He will be fine," said Aly.
"I hope so," said Balen. "Look after him"
"Look after yourself," she responded.
He turned away before it became awkward. They had said what they needed to in the forest so there was no point in staying around, making it harder on the both of them.
Balen left the same way they had arrived and took one last look at Natures paradise before setting off for the monastery. The walk was quiet, even the forest seemed to be empty with only the rustling of leaves as he passed through them. When the sun could be seen through the trees, high within the sky his head began to hurt and the trees around him began to brighten.
'Fine time to fall ill' he thought to himself.
He pushed on and continued walking, knowing that he was still many hours from the monastery and any help. His headache grew worse as he carried on and when the trees thinned and the monastery loomed up before him his vision went completely white and he fell to the ground.
"Well, what is wrong with him?" asked a voice.
Balen's eyes fluttered open and he saw Fahru leaning over him. He was laying down and above him he could see the familiar stones of the monastery.
"Well he is awake finally," said Fahru.
"How did I get here?" Balen asked his friend.
"You were found by some acolytes working the fields. They say you were laying there speaking some strange words so they carried you back," Fahru replied. "What do you remember?"
"A great pain in my head and then everything went white," said Balen and he sat up.
"They couldn't tell what was wrong with you. I had you moved back to your room to rest," said Fahru.
Balen heard the door close.
"Who was that?" Balen asked.
"One of the medical clerics trying to help,” replied Fahru.
"I feel fine," said Balen.
"Well. It is almost time for evening meal, so we will see you there. Did everything go well with the naturists?" asked Fahru.
"He was upset to be left there, but it will do him good," said Balen.
"I hope so," said Fahru, who walked to the door. "See you soon and tomorrow we can talk about your rise to master"
Fahru left the room and Balen lay back down again to think about why he had collapsed but came to no conclusion. His thoughts returned to Aly and the last moments that they spent laying in the fallen leaves of the forest, he smiled and fell into a deep sleep that was filled with strange images of flying beasts.
chapter seven
Several months had passed since Balen's return and he was deep in study. Learning what he needed to know to become a master and take the final tests that would allow him to rise up to the position.
He had received one letter from Danion since the boy had been living with the naturists. It spoke of all the interesting tasks he had been set. Balen figured there was some sarcasm lost through writing rather than speaking. Balen's headaches and white vision moments had continued to plague him. The medical clerics could find nothing wrong with him and just prescribed herbal remedies to ease the pain, but it did little good. His dreams too had been unusual. A recurring dream of him walking through grand halls and seeing a gigantic beast at the end often had him wake up in a cold sweat and breathing hard.
He was now days away from taking his tests and his room had been converted into a mini-library, with towers of books on varying subjects. There was a knock on the door that roused him from the book he was immersing within. "Come in," Balen called out.
In entered Danion's friend Anton. "Good afternoon," said the boy.
"Anton, what can I do for you today?" asked Balen, knowing full well why the boy was here.
"Have you heard from him today?" Anton asked.
Every day since Balen had returned, Anton had come to him and asked whether a letter had arrived from Danion, the boy missed his friend and had been glum about it.
"Not today. No letters arrived," replied Balen.
"Sorry for bothering you," said Anton and then he left the room, slamming the door which sent a tower of books tumbling.
Out of concentration, Balen stood up and began to stack the books, wondering how close the next meal was. The pain in his head came back and he ran to the bed knowing that another of the white outs were about to happen. The pain felt like a spike running through his head and he lay down as his vision went white.
It was the day of his tests and Balen's mind was far from focused upon what he had to do. Since his last white out the headaches had been constant and he had not slept much. He rose from the bed after another sleepless night staring at the ceiling of his room and poured himself a goblet of water from the jug on the desk. The books that were in neat towers now lay strewn across the floor.
Balen changed into his formal robes, left the room and headed for the great hall where he would stand in front of the masters, grand masters and the hand of God. Where he would need to pass the tests set by each of them to earn the title of master. He had no concerns about the tests, they were more a formality than anything as most masters were friendly enough to tell him he would pass. The only one he did worry about was Ryon. The hand of God was known to fail those that did not pass his test.
All along his way the acolytes and clerics he passed wished him well and good luck for if he passed there would be a great feast in celebration. Their stomachs fueled their well wishes just as much as the genuine interest each shared in his rise.
The doors to the great hall were closed and he approached them, following the correct protocol for the ceremony. When he reached the doors he knocked hard upon them three times and they creaked open letting out two guards that held staffs, blocking his way.
"Who asks entrance?" One of them asked.
"Balen," he replied.
"What business do you have here?" The guard asked.
"In the sight of God I have come to prove my worth and merit as a cleric to rise to the position of a master of the path," said Balen, relaying the words he had committed to memory.
The guards raised their staffs, allowing him access and he entered
the hall. The tables and benches that had been lining the hall were moved to the sides and stacked up out of the way. At the far end of the hall, a platform had been erected that rose in tiers depending upon what stage the master was at. At the top sat Ryon upon a large gilded chair, only brought out for this ceremony. Fahru stood on the floor at the front of the platform. As Balen's sponsor he would stand with Balen throughout the ceremony.
"Approach cleric," Ryon's voice echoed across the hall.
He walked across the hall, aware that every pair of eyes were watching every step he made. Each time he took a step he put his hands together and said a prayer to the God for acceptance and thanks. When he reached Fahru, the grand master turned to face the other masters with him.
"Who pledges this cleric to rise up and join the ranks of Master upon the path of God?" Asked Ryon.
"I Fahru, grand master of agriculture pledges the cleric Balen," said Fahru.
Balen's head was screaming in pain and he was doing his best to hold himself together. He did not need a white out right in the middle of his tests.
"Grand librarian Jedicus. Read out the duties and responsibilities of a master," said Ryon.
Jed unfurled an old scroll and cleared his throat. Balen looked at the grand librarian and saw his mouth moving but could hear no sound. Even his headaches had gone, but he could see the whiteness begin to cloud his vision. It went completely white and his body felt like it was beginning to burn, he screamed out loud and felt himself falling to the floor.
chapter eight
Fahru was stood next to Balen when he started screaming, he turned and looked at his friend who seemed to be in pain and all the masters moved forward.
"Balen, can you hear me?" Fahru called to his friend.
He knelt down and placed a hand on his friend then drew it away again as Balen's skin was scalding hot. A bright white light seemed to then engulf Balen and they all stepped back to watch as it seemed like he was covered in white flames.
"Ascension," gasped Fahru.
It was a rare occurrence and often not seen in public. They did not know why it happened, but it was often when the person was alone and then they would be discovered in their new form.
Time seemed to stop as he watched the transformation happen. The other masters were talking amongst themselves and whispering about what was happening. Fahru was scared for his friend, it was a terrifying sight and Balen still screamed in pain.
When the light did fade, Balen was no longer laying there as he once was, in his place was an elve laying upon the floor unconscious. His skin was covered in small scales that seemed to shimmer red and green, his fingers seem to have grown longer with sharper nails on the ends of them and his ears had grown pointed at the top.
Fahru knelt down once more and placed his hand upon his friend, the skin was no longer burning. Ryon appeared next to him.
"Is he breathing?" The hand of God asked.
"Yes," Fahru replied.
The elve in front of them stirred and his eyes opened. Fahru knew those eyes, they were the same as his friends were.
"Can you hear us?" Fahru asked.
The elve looked at them all and seemed to be terrified.
"It is alright, you are safe," said Fahru. He turned to the other masters. "Someone get some water"
One of the other masters ran off to get the water whilst Fahru helped the elve to sit up. "Balen can you hear me?"
The elve looked at him.
"Who is Balen?" He asked.
Fahru had forgotten that ascended elves lost the memories they had as humans. "Your name is Balen, you are a cleric on the path of God. Is any of this familiar to you?" Fahru asked.
The elve looked around and then shook his head. Fahru stood up and looked to Ryon, the hand of God who looked as shocked as the rest of them.
"We must get him to a bed so that he can rest, from what I know the transformation process is a tremendous strain upon the body," said Fahru.
"To think. A cleric has ascended during his test," said one of the masters.
"This is what we all strive for," said Fahru. "God has given his gift to Balen"
"Ascensions have been rare in recent years," said another master.
"We need to send word to the elves," said Jed as he approached.
"Fahru. Get Balen back to his room. Jed can you write a letter to the elves to tell them of the ascension," said Ryon. "The rest of you, we must keep this contained. The clerics will get overexcited about this and we must remain calm and civilised as the clerics of God we are"
They all agreed and set to their tasks. Fahru helped Balen stand up and they began to walk towards the doors when a guard rushed in out of breath, it took him a moment before he could speak.
"Grand master," said the guard panting. "The elves have are approaching"
"How would they have known?" Fahru asked.
It was then that the guard realised what had happened to Balen and his mouth fell open in shock.
"Compose yourself," said Fahru. "Sound the warning bell and spread the word. We need to prepare for their arrival"
The guard ran off and after a few minutes Fahru heard the bell tolling to warn the clerics that elves were approaching.
"Looks like you won't be here for long Balen," he said to his friend.
"Where am I going?" the elve asked.
"To another land. Your new friends have come to collect you and take you there," said Fahru.
"Why?" Balen asked as they walked along the corridor not towards Balen's room but towards the main entrance.
"Because that is where you now belong," said Fahru. "Are you able to stand unaided?"
"I think so," said Balen.
Fahru let go of him and although he was shaking he could stand and began to walk. Clerics and acolytes began to run around, each getting to their rooms to change into their formal robes for the arrival of elves was a special event. They all stopped to stare at Balen until Fahru had to start shouting to get them moving again.
The pair reached the main entrance and clerics were pouring out of them to line up ready to meet the elves. There became a jam in the doors as everyone stopped to look at the elve that was already in their monastery.
"Who is it?" someone shouted and then the question kept being asked until someone answered that it was Balen and then Fahru became inundated with more questions.
"Get to your positions or you will all be working on the plumbing," he shouted.
They dispersed and the way cleared. Fahru could see that Ryon had already made it out into the yard as well as the other grandmasters.
"How are you?" Fahru asked Balen.
The elve looked perplexed and a little scared.
"All will be well soon," said Fahru.
They walked out into the yard into a mill of people that were trying to line up. It had been a while since their last visit from the elves and there was confusion about where they should stand. Some of the masters were trying to gain some order, but it was only when the gates opened that the yard fell silent and they all fell into the lines. In walked a small group of elves, the leader stood six-foot-tall and wore a patch over one of his eyes.
chapter nine
Mavok walked through the gates of the cleric's monastery and looked upon the clerics as they all shifted to get a view of the elves.
They had travelled over the ocean from the elven islands to collect an ascended elve. They had received a signal that one was about to transform thanks to the use of essence. It had been a tough crossing as the weather was rough, but all five elves made it there safe. This was the first time that Mavok had journeyed to the human islands since he had left many centuries ago. He had little love for being here as it brought back bad memories from long ago. His position as an elder of the elven race often kept him too busy to make the crossing, but he chose to go this time.
By some big doors that led into the monastery stood a human and an elve, the one they had come to collect.
'So he has al
ready ascended' thought Mavok.
Through another act of their essence use, the elves had chosen to block a new elves memory of his human life to better ease the transition. They found that as elves were now accepted by the humans, the want to leave former lives was hard for many that transform. The memories would return to them once they had reached the Elven Island.
Mavok walked across the yard, followed by the four other elves and they were intercepted by a small group of humans, one of them was old.
"Welcome master elves. Thank you for honouring us with your presence," said the old man. "I am Ryon, the hand of God and leader of the path."
'How much things have changed here' Mavok thought. The last time he was on this island, the humans treated elves with disdain and often violence. Now they revere and almost worship them.
"By the grace of the guardians we are here to escort an ascended elve to their new home," replied Mavok.
"He is right over there," Ryon pointed. "Please follow us"
The group of humans walked over to the doors where the new elve stood looking terrified when they approached. The human that was next to him stepped forward.
"His name is Balen," said the man.
Mavok nodded and then looked at the elve. "You are safe, there is no need to be frightened. We are here to bring you home," he said to the elve. The elve nodded, but a look of confusion passed over his face.
"Come inside. We will have some food prepared for you," said Ryon.
"Thank you. It has been a long journey and a meal will be good. But we must head back this evening when the tide is low," Mavok said, not wishing to stay longer than they needed to.
Ryon nodded an understanding and then led them inside. Balen followed them, but Fahru remained outside and began to call everyone back to their duties.
chapter ten
The great hall had returned to its former use as an eating area and was a hub of excitement and the masters were losing control of the situation. Each cleric and acolyte tried to get the best seats to see the elves that sat at the head table with the hand of God and grand masters. It was not until the hand of God stood up and shouted for quiet that the hall finally sorted themselves out.
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